Cold-weather burst could lift shares of Domino’s Pizza and North Face maker, history shows

Cold weather may be unbearable for some people, but it usually means more money for investors in Netflix and North Face maker VF Corp.

CNBC analysis using Kensho found that Netflix and VF Corp. shares have averaged a gain of 35 percent and 7 percent, respectively, between Nov. 30 and March 31 over the past 10 years. The analysis also found that both stocks have traded positive 80 percent and 100 percent, respectively, in that time period.

Other stocks that have kept investors warm during the cold winter include Home Depot, Domino’s Pizza and Autozone. Both Home Depot and Autozone have averaged a return of 11 percent during the last 10 winters, while Domino’s has averaged a 24 percent gain.

The East Coast of the U.S. is experiencing frigid conditions, and temperatures are expected to drop further throughout the week.

The National Weather Service issued winter storm watches and warnings on Wednesday from north-central Florida through eastern New England. The service also said an area of low pressure will move up the Atlantic Coast on Thursday and Friday.

Here’s what to buy if it gets really cold

CNBC found that some travel and retail stocks tend to outperform the market when the U.S. is hit by a cold wave, which is a rapid fall in temperature during a 24-hour period, as determined by the National Weather Service.

Since 1997, Priceline shares have gained an average of 9.1 percent one month after an official cold wave strikes while Royal Caribbean shares have climbed 7.9 percent. The cold weather likely gets people to travel to warmer locales or at least start planning to do so.

Other stocks that perform well following such weather events are Target and Macy’s. Target’s average return after a cold wave is 6.6 percent, while Macy’s averages a return of 6.3 percent. Warm winters could hurt department stores by leaving a lot of cold weather clothing inventory on the books. The S&P 500 meanwhile, has averaged a return of 2.2 percent in these instances dating back to 1997.

Natural gas stocks, meanwhile, have lagged the market after a cold wave hits the U.S.

Shares of Concho Resources have averaged a decline of 15.2 percent after the last five cold waves, dating back to 1997. Newfield Exploration, Chesapeake Energy and Transocean have also averaged declines of more than 10 percent. Anadarko Petroleum shares, meanwhile, have fallen an average of 9 percent, according to Kensho.

When there is frigid weather, sometimes natural gas companies are forced to close down their wells.